Furtherance
by Lex of Light
Summary: Their personalities and fighting styles are polar opposites, but they share a noble purpose. However, in those differences, they grow and better themselves as the world around them seems to crumble.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Too much time had gone to waste. Many Crimeans had fallen under Daein's rule in his absence and he would not rest until he restored his superb and knightly shape, which would allow him to cut through the hordes of ebon-clad demons that occupied his precious country – his home of Melior. Despite his years of training, the elite soldiers under his command, and his mastery of the axe, Captain Kieran suffered the most humiliating defeat of his life weeks prior to his release from Castle Canteus, and he would be dammed if he squandered this second chance to retake Crimea and restore his honour.

Before he could swing his axe for what felt like the one thousandth time, he dropped his weapon, which almost landed on his foot. He fell backwards a few seconds later, his body shutting down even though his mind screamed for more training. Duke Renning would've chewed him out for overtaxing his body, while General Geoffrey's approving nod would have been a generous praise for his dedication, but they were not with him. He wasn't taking orders from the men he looked up to. He was taking orders from a stranger - a good and trustworthy man – who saved the Princess after he failed to protect her.

Kieran regained enough strength to move his arm and block the sun's intense light from his eyes. He noticed that his recent exposure to the sun was at least returning some colour to his skin.

After thirty minutes of lying on the dirt, the red-haired knight stood up once again. He toyed with the idea of continuing his training with some push-ups or perhaps running through the nearby woods, but he decided against it when he realized that he had spent too much time away from Princess Elincia. The Greil Mercenaries were with her, and they were more than capable of protecting her, but Kieran's sense of duty wouldn't let stray away from General Geoffrey's last order: "Protect her at all cost." She was their client, but he was honour-bound to protect her

Once he retrieved his steel axe from the ground and his tunic that hung on a nearby branch, Kieran headed back to Port Toha. It felt a little unreal to find a town that had been untouched by Daein's steel. As nice as it was to bask in Port Toha's false sense of peace, Captain Kieran would instantly remember his skirmishes with Daein's forces whenever he felt himself relax. Even as he passed the front gate of the fishing town, all he could think of was those few seconds he lost sight of Princess Elincia before her disappearance.

Kieran spotted Commander Ike's tactician talking to the quiet, teal-haired soldier girl near the Inn they were staying in. It seemed like the short mage was giving her some basic supplies for the next battle. He couldn't help but notice the lance he was giving her appeared to be in poor condition. He approached them to make sure that the soldier girl wasn't going into battle with a shoddy weapon, only to confirm that she was given a glorified broomstick for a lance.

"Excuse me!" he declared loudly.

Kieran startled both of them, but the tactician returned to his cool and collected demeanour by the time he turned to face the Crimean knight. "Kieran," he said. "Good, I wanted to speak with you about something important."

His pride got the better of him. "Let me guess: You and the commander want to utilize my expertise to lead the cavalry!"

"Not so loud!" he hissed. "And no, Titania leads all mounted soldiers." Kieran's enthusiasm crashed just as fast as it rose. "Let's go somewhere private."

Kieran felt like he forgot something when Soren faced the militia girl and apologized for something. Soren then lead him the part of town where most of the fishermen lived. The streets and old wooden houses were mostly empty because they were still at sea. The salty air was disorienting for the knight who barely stepped out of Crimea's core region.

"I heard you can vouch for the Princess' claim to the throne," he stated.

"You think she's been lying to you?" Kieran asked, trying his best not to sound angry.

"What I think is not important. However, we might need a little more than her good word to convince Begnion's leaders." Kieran was aware of the difficult position the late king's daughter was in. He didn't quite understand why she was hidden away from the court, but he didn't like to dwell on politics. "I need to know just how much weight your word will have if we need you to confirm the fact that she's the only heir to the Crimean throne when we meet the senate."

"What do you mean by that? I'm a knight of Crimea, captain of the Fifth Platoon! I answer directly to General Geoffrey and Duke Renning," Kieran stated proudly. "My word weights just as much as the immense trust these great men have placed on me."

Soren sighed and shook his head. "That's nice. Not exactly what I'm asking, though."

He raised an eyebrow questioningly. "Then what are you asking?"

The young tactician looked at Kieran as if he were the biggest idiot in Tellius. "You look a little young for your rank. I'm asking if you're the son of a baron, count…"

"Are you suggesting that I haven't earned my rank?" Soren had no idea he had just delivered the worst possible insult anyone could give the red-haired knight.

"That's up to you to decide. But I see this conversation is getting me nowhere." Soren turned to the direction which they came from.

Kieran tensed and clenched his fists, but he called Soren out just before he was out of earshot. "Hey!" Soren turned to face Kieran again. "I'm no noble. I am the youngest son of a wealthy merchant." He grunted softly. "The senators know my father."

"Ah," he said. Kieran hated that sound. It was the sound of it all making sense to them once they learned of his family. "Thanks for sharing that. It might prove very useful if we need to back the Princess' claims."

The knight felt like hacking away at something – anything – once Soren was nowhere to be seen. It was a sensitive subject for him… the equivalent of throwing salt to an open wound for him. He managed to quickly calm himself down with a deep breath. Though, he prayed he wouldn't be needed once they met the senate. Kieran was willing to do anything for Princess Elincia. Nevertheless, he had preferences. He'd rather serve only on the battlefield.

As he made his way back, he saw the militia girl from earlier giving a loaf of bread to a small girl. Kieran watched as the militia girl patted the child on the head and sent the grinning child away. It was then that he remembered Soren giving the militia girl a half broken lance and he wanted to know why – sending recruits to fight with poor quality weapons wasn't very smart.

"Miss!" he called out. And Kieran startled her for a second time on that day. When she faced him, Kieran noticed she had positioned her helmet to hide her eyes from him. He thought she was intimidated by a knight. Some squires and green recruits avoided eye contact with their superiors, nothing a little experience couldn't fix. Kieran was once terrified of Duke Renning.

"Ya got a funny way of greetin' people," she said nervously. Kieran did not hear her.

Just before he questioned the militia girl on why she was given that shoddy lance, Kieran realized he forgot her name. He heard that Brom fella call her by name once. It was long and had too many syllables for Kieran's liking. But not remembering your comrade's name was rude, so Kieran stood in front of the militia girl and stared at her, waiting until he could remember her name, completely unaware of how uncomfortable he was making her feel.

His stare became so intense that she, for some unknown reason to Kieran, found the ground very interesting. After a few awkward minutes passed, he yelled "Marcia!" But he remembered that the girl in front of him wasn't a Pegasus knight. "Is not your name."

She looked up, still hiding her eyes. " I… Know."

"Give me a minute." He resumed his intense stare.

"Nephenee," she hurriedly said.

"Bless you," he replied.

"No… um, that is my name," she said.

"Oh! That's right!" He recalled that time when Brom introduced her to Commander Ike and Princess Elincia. "Your name is Nephenee!"

She cocked her head slightly to the left. "It… is." Despite the fact that her helmet hid part of her face, it was clear she was very confused… and a little frightened. "Can I help you with somethin'?"

Kieran's eyes widened._ What did I need from her? _The tables had turned. She now stared at him, and he was nervous. Since he couldn't remember what he wanted to talk about with her, he told her what he told his soldiers whenever he was in this position. "I just wanted to tell you to fight true and bold, and you'll made Crimea proud!" That line had never failed before

"I – Thanks, Captain, I will." She seemed a little more confident. Kieran had no idea how much she needed that sudden burst of encouragement. In fact, seeing some brash and somewhat thickheaded knight hold his head up in pride, despite how slim their chances of success were, boosted everyone's morale. He also made people smile when he wasn't screaming their ears off.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"The Commander and I are impressed with your performance," Soren stated, not looking at her. Instead, he focused on writing something in his book, which was quite a feat due to him being on his feet and rocking ship beneath them. "If I recall correctly, you told me that you have little experience in combat." He looked up; his serious expression was a little intimidating to her, despite his shorter and thinner build. "Are you as green as you say you are?"

"I joined the militia not too long ago. We didn't get any training." She thought for a moment before speaking again. "Other than scarin' off some bandits from Ma's farm, I have no other combat experience." She had never killed anyone; she had hesitated to deliver the final blow on a Daein soldier in her first battle after joining the militia. "I was easy pickin' for Daein." She looked down, ashamed of speaking of her capture – she wanted to do better.

Soren wrote something again. "Yes well, I'm thinking of taking you off the support unit. If I have Titania's recommendation, you'll be moved up to Ike's personal force." Nephenee's eyes widened at what the tactician told her. If what she heard was true, Soren and the Greil Mercenaries' second-in-command were putting together a strike force to fight side-by-side with the Commander and to watch his back. She felt honoured that she might play an important role in the future.

"Thank ya," she stuttered. "But are ya sure?"

Soren nodded. "You're fast, even with all that armour. We need people that can keep up with Ike because he can be… reckless if someone is in danger." He took out a piece of paper and closed his book. "But it's not a done deal. Like I said, I need Titania's recommendation. And you can refuse if you'd rather keep your support role instead." Soren handed her the brownish paper. "However, there's some perks with this promotion. Your earnings will increase by ten percent if you accept."

She could hardly read Soren's handwriting; from what little she did understand, it what something about one steel lance and a javelin. "What's this?" she asked before he left to talk to another member of their company.

"It's proof of purchase," he explained. "Take it to Muston and he'll give you your new weapons. If you're low on medicine, go to Rhys. I believe he has plenty in stock."

Nephenee bowed her head in gratitude. "That's kind of ya."

"Nothing kind about it," he stated. He scratched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "I must apologize again for the last lance I gave you. We were going through some tough times."

"I understand," she assured him again. Even someone as detached as Soren looked guilty about sending some of the mercenaries with armament that was in less than perfect condition. "Is there somethin' I can do to help around?"

The tactician stroked his chin in thought. "That last battle with the raven pirates left us with some spoils." He opened his book and pointed at something she couldn't see. "It might not last us long with our size." He closed his records again, the look on his face indicated that he had an idea. "We could use a little more for materials to fix armours like yours once we reach land."

"I'd like to help if I can." Truth be told, she wanted something to keep her busy. Doing nothing wasn't like her and she was starting to feel restless whenever she found herself just staring at the sea – not that she didn't enjoy the beauty of it, but something closer to home was what she needed.

"Captain Nasir told me that he's understaffed. Some of his crewmen were killed by Daein soldiers before our departure," he informed. "He's willing to pay us for some chores around the ship. I think Oscar is helping out in cooking meals, and Titania is doing some navigating."

She nodded. "I'll see if I can make myself useful 'round the ship."

He raised his hand to stop her. "While I appreciate your dedication, training should be your first and only priority. We need everyone at their best, so make sure to find time to train."

"Alright." She had already sparred with Brom a few hours prior to speaking with Soren, but she made a mental note to train some more on that day and every day from then on since she might play a bigger role in future skirmishes.

"Commander Ike is always looking to spar with someone. Look him up if you're feeling up to it." Nephenee smiled nervously. Sparring with Ike was the last thing she wanted to do. Seeing him in battle was enough for her to be eternally grateful for not being on the Commander's bad side. "If there's nothing else to discuss, I have to check up on Rolf's condition."

"Nothin' else, sir." It felt strange to address him so formally, but he was technically her superior.

"Good." And they went their separate ways: Soren continued briefing everyone else individually, while Nephenee picked up her new equipment and found work around the ship to keep herself busy.

XXXX

Being next to Oscar and leaning against the ship's rail brought back some memories of his days prior to becoming a knight. Days he and his eternal rival would finish their training early and spend some time watching the knights train. Kieran admitted only to himself that Oscar was tolerable company in those rare moments in which he wasn't plotting some sort of vile and evil plan to make him look like a fool. And the scoundrel had his uses: Cooking being one of those rare and useful skills his dastardly rival possessed.

Presently, Oscar watched his younger brother train with Commander Ike while Kieran kept a watchful eye on Princess Elincia, who was chatting with Lethe and Mordecai a few feet away from them. Although he couldn't hear everything they were saying, Kieran noted the Princess was very interested in Gallian society. But after a while, Kieran found the match between Oscar's brother and Commander Ike much more interesting. They were both skilled… but something seemed odd.

"Your brother is big," Kieran pointed out.

Oscar let out a brief laugh. "That's true. For some reason, he looks more like Commander Greil than our late parents."

"He was an infant the last time I saw him. I can't believe he grew up so much in such a small amount of time." Kieran squinted, trying to find the resemblance to the child he saw once, but found none.

Oscar shook his head. "You're thinking of Rolf – That's Boyd." He scratched the side of his head. "I don't think you two ever met."

"And Rolf is?" Kieran asked.

"Did you see a child with a bow on our last battle?"

"Yes! That concerned me. I mean, we were young when we entered in His Majesty's service , but that kid was seemed too young to handle a knife," Kieran voiced out. He was genuinely worried. Some of his comrades seemed too young for their line of work.

"Well, that's Rolf." Kieran was about to berate Oscar on being a lousy older brother when someone who walked by caught his attention. "Isn't that…"

"Nefenii!" Kieran interrupted. Nephenee almost dropped the buckets of water she was carrying.

Oscar looked at Kieran with a raised brow. "Impressive pronunciation." The former knight went over to Nephenee. "Need some help?"

"I'm fine. Thanks." She raised and lowered both of the large buckets she had to show that she had no trouble with them.

Kieran joined them. "What are you going to do with all that water?" he asked.

"Clean the horses," she answered, avoiding eye contact with both of them.

Kieran was confused. "Are you being punished? For what?"

She looked lost at what Kieran said. "Don't pay any attention him. Our superiors would make us clean their horses if we overslept or performed poorly," Oscar explained.

"Nasir asked me to clean the horses," she shuddered. " And wyvern." She spoke a little louder that the last time they spoke, and Kieran noticed that she had an accent.

"Thanks for that," Oscar said.

She nodded and went on her way. A realization dawned on Kieran – hard: His Majesty's sole heir was under the protection of a small mercenary company, small children were being forced to fight, and simple citizens like the militiawoman were continuing the battle he – Captain Kieran – lost. Maybe it had been denial or the torture and starvation from his incarceration that kept him from realizing just how deep their failure – his failure – had been.

"Kieran?"

"Huh?"

"Are you alright?"

"Of course!" he lied. "I'm always on top of things!" Oscar sighed. Showing concern for Kieran was like being kind to a rock. "Let's spar to show you that I'm fine."

Despite Oscar being drained of energy, he obliged. He knew Kieran needed something to distract himself for the moment.


End file.
